The first thing that will be said about Mammothfest is that it is certainly not for the faint hearted; it provides you with three days of pure brutality, chaos and a lot of metal. There was also the beautiful sense of community that brings all these metal misfits together in one huge gathering.

Friday 2^nd October

The first port of call for this infamous festival was The Haunt suitably placed right by the sea front; its dark surroundings provided the perfect atmosphere for the brutal proceedings of Metal. Upon arrival Southampton Thrashers TERRATHORN were showing us what they were made of, just missing local quartet KING LEVIATHAN which was a shame because they are a great live band. Anyway back to TERRATHORN, upon arriving it was clearly evident they already had crowds bowing down before them and eating out of their hands. They were the first band to show us that Mammothfest definitely wasn't for the fearful and timid.

This can be stated from each of the bands that played that night; particularly Canterbury based Death/Thrash Metal outfit WRETCHED SOUL. They tore the house down and kept up their sterling reputation with live shows with their neck breaking riffs, solos and beats.  They are quite easily one of Britain's rising Metal bands to immerse from the depths.

ONSLAUGHT seem to be a sacred treasure of the Thrash Metal community as the big four ran rampant, the name has been heard and spoken of across the community. They are a band that simply cannot be missed; they provided the perfect choice to headline. This set provided everything the perfect atmosphere and vibes ready to start the rest of the weekend ahead. The togetherness it provided amongst the metalheads was just magical so any stresses and worries were swept away by one jerk of the head and neck (a.k.a. the headbang)

If this didn't provide the perfect start to a weekend of Brutal Metal then it's unknown what will.

Saturday 3^rd October

Saturday was the day that started things off at the different venues to help showcase the latest talents in Metal on a national and international scales. The three venues that displayed the upcoming talent were Sticky Mike's Frog Bar which hosted the Terrorizer stage, The Green Door Store and The Prince Albert.

Sticky Mike's Frog Bar is a great venue for Metal; the bands play in a dark basement and it seems as if the moment they start to play there is no escape, as a fellow metalhead quoted it was like being in a trap from the infamous movie "Saw". A great example of this was when ATONEMENT took to the stage; for those who don't know ATONEMENT is a one man Brutal Death Metal band who relies on his voice and shredding skills against a fierce drumming track. Considering it was first thing in the early afternoon and attendees may have been nursing hangovers ATONEMENT seemed to keep the crowd attentive.  Other notable performances from Sticky Mike's included SYNROM and headliners PSYCROPTIC that filled up the venue.

The Prince Albert provided another ideal spot for the metal head crowd; the ironic thing about this venue is that it was one of those places where you would heard cheesy disco music such as ABBA to then suddenly transition to the brutal goings on of the Metal bands upstairs function room. This intimate setting provided the perfect sound system too. Bands that caught the eye that particular day were THE INFERNAL SEA, AS FLAMES RISE and THIEVES BY THE CODE.

Your initial sighing of THE INFERNAL SEA was their appearance, the arty Italian masks are enough to attract and engage interest. Their tight sound and their haunting vibe was enough to have anyone rooted to the spot, not wanting to be anywhere else.

AS FLAMES RISE showed us boundless energy that was so infectious that the whole room was bounding and head banging to the rhythms; this Melodic Metalcore quintet hailing from Weymouth, Dorset. Managing to catch them at a friend's recommendation was a wise decision; one of the most intriguing things about them was the dual vocalists' style, it's becoming quite a well known feature amongst Metal bands and for this chaotic bunch it worked a treat.

Brighton Trio THEIVES BY THE CODE provided a happy go lucky vibe with their sounds reminding me of QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE. Their Blues Rock music provided the perfect end of summer soundtrack and prompted a great song and dance from the crowd.  Blind drummer Nick Van Vlaenderen showed us that if you put your mind to something you can overcome obstacles to accomplish your goals, his drumming skills were outstanding.

The last venue to play host some of the best underground bands is the Green Door Store. This is one of Brighton's prominent venues, its simple layout, edgy decor and conveniently located right next to the train station, this makes it the perfect spot for bands to showcase their talent.

Quirky Bournemouth AAND? were a surprise; the first thing to hit you is their black and white chequered morph suits, your first thoughts are initially "What the fuck" however their tight sound quickly wins the crowd over. They are one of the most unusual bands one had come across, if you want to see a Metal band in morph suits and having unexpected chicken sounds on the soundtrack.

Brighton outfit BLEED AGAIN also gave an energy fuelled performance with a tight sound and took audience interaction to a whole new level with vocalist James Dawson and guitarists Chris Pratt and Simon Williams making their way through the crowds. They showcased some new material which went down with Brighton's crowd.

This was a pretty packed day which attracted metalheads from far and wide to enjoy the festivities; bringing them together.

Sunday 4^th October

So that hangovers can be nursed in a timely fashion the bands started a little later; more chances to enjoy the sea air, perhaps get an ice cream, fish and chips and walk along the pier. One of the best cures for a hangover. This didn't stop metal heads enjoying the last day of metal.
Sticky Mike's Frog Bar again played host to some of the best underground metal; notable performances came from VEHEMENT, CODEX ALIMENTARIUS and BLACK SKIES BURN.

VEHEMENT are one of the most prominent Metal bands to come from the South coast; they are a strong malevolent force that are not to be messed with. This Black Metal quartet are more than an engaging bunch; their intense music showcased grandly by their brutal live shows. The underground basement provided the perfect ambience for this band; keep a look out for this band as they are due to release an album.

CODEX ALIMENTARIUS and BLACK SKIES BURN provided a lot of brutality and chaos to Sticky Mike's Frog Bar. It was later on in the afternoon so there were more people in the venue and hangovers were starting to pass over. Whether the hangovers were still it was great to see people enjoying the music and showing their appreciation by headbanging and fist pumping.

One highlight of the festival travelled from sunny Cyprus to provide Brighton with their first UK performance, the band in question are called STORMCAST and the name pretty much speaks for itself. Their live performance didn't sound too different to their recording; their mesmerising, beautiful music encouraged the sweeping headbanging and it almost had you hypnotised. Let's hope they come back to the UK soon.

The Prince Albert also gave us theatrical Metal outfit GEHTIKA who were in the gentlemanly attire mixed with jokeresque make-up. This particular band were extremely enchanting with their excellent music and theatrical stage presence; who else would you see that does pirouettes on stage and try to photo bomb a photograph you are taking of your friends? Go and watch GEHTIKA; you will not regret it.

It also played host to a band named HADE'S LAB; the name suggested purely Black Metal so the surprise of Grindcore and Death Metal thrown into the mix seemed to work splendidly. Their brutal show caused chaos and pandemonium in The Prince Albert which with this sort of metal and in the intimate setting seemed to provide the perfect atmosphere for metal heads. Their sound was extremely impressive and their boundless energy showed their undying passion.

The Green Door Store played host to a Doom fuelled afternoon/evening where were a lot of notable performances.

KING GOAT are one of Brighton's best bred Metal bands, their haunting atmosphere they creating with their mesmerising music created by dominant vocals, incense sticks on the bass and the exhilarating melodies on the guitars is easy to see why KING GOAT are a favourite.  SEA BASTARD provided a more brutal aspect to the evening, this band are certainly not for the faint hearted with their hard hitting guitar riffs, pounding bass lines and heart pounding vocals. SLABDRAGGER provided the perfect material as main support for HANG THE BASTARD, so much so to the point of anxiety of them upstaging the headliners, this was shown through their boundless energy and tight sound.

This stage was headlined triumphantly by London based HANG THE BASTARD. To say they did themselves proud would be an understatement, they are becoming quite highly established within the Metal community and seeing their tight performance that Sunday evening it is easy to see why. Their exceptionally tight sound, their beautiful unity on stage and a more than attentive crowd it was clearly evident that HANG THE BASTARD were the ideal headliners to end the festival on a high.

The first experience of Mammothfest was filled with brutality, chaos, togetherness and copious amounts of alcohol; so overall it was an incredible experience and would like to express a huge thank you and well done to Steve Dickson, Rich Ravenhill and the rest of the crew for their hard work running the festival.